


chairman of the board, the chief of affections (you got mine's to swing in your direction)

by nykteris



Series: a study in romances [2]
Category: DIA (Band), I.O.I (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-25
Updated: 2016-05-25
Packaged: 2018-06-10 09:20:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6950362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nykteris/pseuds/nykteris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"(...) I told Nayoung about it on the phone earlier and she told me I was a complete moron for not knowing that you’re, quote unquote, <i>the</i> Jung Chaeyeon, most popular girl in school and granddaughter of the dean who I just called a hag yesterday but just to be clear, I totally didn’t mean that.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	chairman of the board, the chief of affections (you got mine's to swing in your direction)

**Author's Note:**

> yet another ship that i'm new to writing but one i've grown so fond of recently. inspired by a conversation i had with romy, for whom this is written for, about college au!chaehyun.
> 
> title is from 'bonita applebum' by a tribe called quest

Chaeyeon supposes that she ought to get used to this.

She ought to get used to the horrified stares she gets from everyone whenever she bumps into Heehyun around campus and the other girl lightly punches her on the arm with a “‘Sup, dude!” or when she yells “ _Oi, you!_ ” at Chaeyeon from across the covered court.

She ought to get used to the muffled whispers and gasps from everyone around her when Heehyun runs up to her and half-yells a story about her day or about some other crazy thing she’s seen elsewhere.

She ought to get used to how Heehyun rolls up beside her on her battered skateboard that looks like it’ll break any second now, her headphones hanging around her neck, and the curious looks it elicits from spectators. More than once she’s heard someone mumble, “How are those two even friends?”

In all honesty, Chaeyeon enjoys it. She finds everyone’s surprise entertaining if not a little unnecessary. Most of all, she finds Heehyun’s cluelessness refreshing and even charming, sort of just like Heehyun herself.

  


-

  


In everyone else’s defense, Chaeyeon and Heehyun’s friendship really was unexpected.

No one expected ( _expects_ , rather) Jung Chaeyeon -- the granddaughter of the university’s dean and campus heartthrob, straight A’s student and most popular girl in school -- to be friends with and let alone know the name of Ki Heehyun -- that one person that arrives twenty minutes late to class, hair still tousled and only a pen and notebook in hand, always a lazy smile on her face and a drawl to her words.

But the thing with the universe is that it has a funny way of making the unexpected happen and making two people from seemingly different worlds cross paths.

 

 

*

  


They had met in a cafe ("Our cafe,” Heehyun would now call it, smiling that endearing lopsided smile of hers); Chaeyeon had gone out for coffee to blow off some steam from the hours she had spent poring over her textbook and Heehyun just wanted to get away from her roommate Nayoung ( _Kim_ , not Im) and her girlfriend Sejeong who were probably desecrating every surface desecratable, if that was even a word. Not a nice mental image. It was half past eight o’clock in the evening and half past the remainder of Heehyun’s sanity when they happened to cross paths.

Chaeyeon had been sitting by the window, headphones plugged into her ears, when Heehyun had walked over to her table and sat herself down on the empty chair across Chaeyeon. They had stared at each other for a few seconds before Heehyun beamed at her and said, “Hey there, stranger.”

Chaeyeon pulled out her headphones, a little dubious but finding nothing to be alarmed by with the girl’s presence. “Hi. Do I know you?”

“No, probably not.” Heehyun pointed at the lanyard -- it had the university’s name on it -- of Chaeyeon’s I.D., which was placed on top of the coffee table. The only reason it was with Chaeyeon was because her apartment keys were on it. “But judging from your lanyard, I can see we’re from the same university.”

Chaeyeon offered her a small smile. “That’s...nice.”

“I’m sure I’d remember someone as pretty as you if I came across you on campus, though.”

“Did you really go all the way here to just hit on me?”

“W-what? No! I mean, Jesus -- I just saw your lanyard when I was standing by the counter, I didn’t -- Oh, God.” Heat had crept up Heehyun’s cheeks then and Chaeyeon found it amusing how easy it was to fluster her (this would bite Heehyun back in the ass later on after they’ve become friends). Chaeyeon had giggled and Heehyun’s face had gone even redder.

Chaeyeon offered her hand to Heehyun. “I’m Chaeyeon.”

Heehyun stared at Chaeyeon’s hand for a few seconds before grasping it in hers and giving it a firm shake. “And I’m Heehyun.”

They had talked the night away after that. Heehyun pulled out story after story and Chaeyeon’s stomach ached from all the laughing she had been doing.

  


-

  


Neither of them actually agreed or suggested to meet up again and again at the cafe after their first meeting, but it happens anyway and neither of them bother to question it. There isn’t anything unpleasant or awkward about it all because Heehyun is easy to be around and Chaeyeon rolls with the punches.

Heehyun always rolls up to the cafe on her battered skateboard, rain or shine, and Chaeyeon always had a hot cup of coffee waiting for her. Then they would fall into a conversation about anything and everything under the sun. Chaeyeon finds herself growing more and more fond of these conversations over coffee and class notes left unnoticed.

  


-

  


It eventually dawns on Chaeyeon that Heehyun has absolutely no idea about just who she is, or at least her status on campus. Truth be told, Chaeyeon is happy about that. Relieved, even. Because the last thing she needs or wants is another person to look at her all glassy-eyed, willing and eager to kiss the ground she walks on.

Chaeyeon likes how Heehyun has close to no filter when she’s with her, likes how she can be blunt and even a little brusque, likes how she has a story to tell all the time, like a Sheherazade of sorts. She likes how Heehyun will shove her headphones at her and say, “Okay, but you have _got_ to listen to this song!”, then go on talking about music. By the end of their hang-out sessions, Chaeyeon has another obscure band’s songs on her phone and she plays them on repeat.

Chaeyeon can only imagine how different Heehyun might act around her if Heehyun actually paid enough attention to how people reacted whenever she greeted Chaeyeon with a  punch to the arm and a toothy grin. But she likes everything as is, likes having Heehyun as is.

 

-

  


“Hey, I didn’t know you had a fanclub,” Heehyun tells Chaeyeon as they walk down the hall together. Chaeyeon scowls and asks, “A _fanclub_?”

“Yeah,” Heehyun replies with a shrug. “Chased after me earlier this morning, asked me how I, quote unquote, got a literal goddess -- referring to you -- to notice me.”

“You sure you aren’t just making this up?”

“I’m not! I told Nayoung about it on the phone earlier and she told me I was a complete moron for not knowing that you’re, quote unquote, _the_ Jung Chaeyeon, most popular girl in school and granddaughter of the dean who I just called a hag yesterday but just to be clear, I totally didn’t mean that.”

Chaeyeon raises a brow. “You called my grandmother a _hag_?”

“Hey, I said I didn’t mean it!” Heehyun mumbles, face heating up. “I said it out of, I dunno, spite and all that. I think your grandmother is a _wonderful_ lady. Don’t believe what anyone else tells you.”

“I was kidding,” Chaeyeon says with a laugh, lightly nudging Heehyun. “And I suppose it’s about time you actually found out all that.”

“Yeah, I mean, I can’t be a complete moron forever.”

“Oh, I dunno about _that_.”

“Ouch, Chaeyeon. _Ouch_.”

Chaeyeon chuckles. “You’re handling all of this a lot...better than most people.”

“Well, it’s cool and all, but…” Heehyun shrugs. “To me, you’re still the same girl I met at that cafe, you’re still my Chaeyeon.”

 _My Chaeyeon_. Chaeyeon’s heart flutters and her lips curl into a smile. She links her arm with Heehyun’s for the rest of the time they walk together, her heart still doing somersaults.

  


-

  


One evening, Heehyun offers to walk her home and Chaeyeon lets her.

They walk in silence, hands brushing. When they reach the front steps of the apartment, Chaeyeon presses a her lips to Heehyun’s cheek in a chaste kiss. “Thanks for walking me home, Heehyun,” she says with just the slightest tinge of rosy pink in her cheeks.

The last thing she sees before turning away from Heehyun is a grin that spreads from ear to ear on the other girl’s face.

  


-

  


Chaeyeon had never really been fond of these big and fancy galas that her parents and grandmother made her attend, never really enjoyed having to spend an entire night having to laugh at things that weren’t funny and listen to people talk about things she didn’t really care about. Her cheeks would go sore from having to sustain a smile for show.

Thirty minutes into a conversation with the son of some dignitary and Chaeyeon already feels like necking herself. He’s talking about Sartre now and though she has nothing against the Frenchman, bless his soul, she really doesn’t want to be stuck for even just five more minutes with the dignitary’s son. She excuses herself, promises to be back (she won’t) and pulls out her phone. She looks for Heehyun’s number and hits the call button.

“What’s up, dude?”

Chaeyeon smiles at the sound of Heehyun’s voice, thankful for the familiarity. She looks over her shoulder to where her parents are standing; they had always been much better than her at this socialising with the socialites thing. “Hey.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be at some party or whatever fancy thing that is?”

“Yeah, I am. The only problem is I don’t wanna be.”

“Text me the address. I’ll get you out of there.”

“Alright, I’ll see you in a bit.”

  


*

  


Heehyun arrives fifteen minutes later in a red sedan (“Nayoung’s, but I’m pretty sure she won’t notice I borrowed it since she’s got Sejeong over,” Heehyun explains, wrinkling her nose) and Chaeyeon grabs a bottle of champagne from the waiter that passes by her, rushing past him when he yelps in surprise.

“Where to?” Heehyun asks her.

Chaeyeon shrugs, champagne bottle cradled in her arms. “I honestly don’t know. Anywhere is fine.”

“Anywhere it is then.”

They drive around aimlessly with the windows down and Heehyun’s music playing in the background. Chaeyeon hums along to the songs she’s familiar with and Heehyun taps her fingers on the steering wheel. They enter a tunnel and Heehyun says, “There’s this cliff overlooking the city and it’s nice to watch the sunrise from there.”

“Is that where we’re headed?”

“Yup.”

Chaeyeon chuckles. “This is turning out to look like something right out of a movie.”

“Never a dull moment with me,” Heehyun replies with a wink.

They drive in silence for another ten minutes before they finally reach the place Heehyun had been talking about. She parks the car and the both of them get out, choosing to sit on the hood of the car to stay up and watch the sunrise. The windows of the car are left rolled down so that they can still hear the music playing.

They pass the bottle of champagne between them, drinking straight from the bottle They fall into conversation, talking about this, and that, and anything they could think of in between gulps of champagne. It’s barely past midnight but they’ve finished the bottle of champagne and Chaeyeon’s eyelids are already fluttering close. Her head lolls to the side, resting on Heehyun’s shoulder. “Go sleep,” Heehyun says to her softly. “I’ll wake you up when the sun’s about to rise.”

So Chaeyeon falls asleep, head rested snugly on Heehyun’s shoulder and her hand loosely clasped with Heehyun’s.

  


*

  


Chaeyeon wakes up when she feels the faint warmth of the sun touch her skin, the growing light burning the back of her eyelids. She rubs the sleep away from her eyes and lifts her neck from Heehyun’s shoulder. She turns to look at Heehyun and she softly laughs to herself -- Heehyun is fast asleep with her mouth wide open, a soft snore escaping her mouth. She tucks a loose strand of hair behind Heehyun’s ear and rests her head back on Heehyun’s shoulder, watching the sun gradually rise above the city.

When the sun has taken its place high up in the sky, Chaeyeon looks at Heehyun again then down at their intertwined fingers. She smiles; this is something she could get used to.

**Author's Note:**

> comments and kudos are lovely and greatly appreciated!


End file.
